Court calls for Vinnik’s extradition to America

Greece’s Supreme Court ruled yesterday that the Russian cybercrime suspect Alexander Vinnik should be extradited to the US to face charges of allegedly laundering billions of dollars using the Bitcoin electronic currency.

Vinnik was appealing a decision by a Thessaloniki appeals court that ruled in favor of his extradition to the US, where he is wanted in connection with a 4-billion-dollar bitcoin fraud case.

According to legal procedure, the country’s top court did not disclose the reasoning behind its decision yesterday.

The 38-year-old is wanted both by the US and Russia, which has also requested his extradition.

The Russians want him to stand trial over the less serious charge of conducting a business scam worth 10,000 euros.

He has repeatedly said that he would prefer to stand trial in his native Russia, where he claims he will be treated fairly, as opposed to the US, where he says he will not be given a fair trial and that he could also face torture.

He made his case in favor of the Russian justice system in an interview with Kathimerini in November – his first with a Greek paper.

“I’m not scared of appearing in court [in Russia]. Our courts are honest,” he told the paper, adding that he feared that if he is extradited he will “never return from the US.”

In the US Vinnik faces charges that carry a sentence of more than 50 years.

“They want to impose a 55-year sentence on me, which basically means that I will be deprived of my freedom for life,” he said.

Vinnik, who has been dubbed “Mr Bitcoin,” was arrested in July while on holiday with his family in Halkidiki, northern Greece.

The ultimate decision over where he will be extradited to lies with Greek Justice Minister Stavros Kontonis.

Legal experts say that if the justice minster signs both the American and Russian extradition requests, the former will take precedence over the latter as the charges he faces in the US are considered far more serious than those in his homeland.

Furthermore, the American charges preceded the Russian ones.